Canadians—such as your humble author—have a reputation, for better or worse, for being extremely nice. Unwavering politeness has always stood shoulder-to-shoulder with hockey, free healthcare, and Drake on the official list of Most Canadian Things Ever. Evidently, this inherent soft-spokenness extends to the exotic car rally set as well—perhaps unexpectedly, as that crowd has a bit of a reputation elsewhere for being…not those things.
In episode 2 of Vice‘s automotive documentary series, “Smoke Show,” viewers get a ride-along with North Face Rally and their affluent and secretive leader, “Ghostrider”. Think Gold Rush Rally, but y’know, Canadian—a descriptor that applies both geographically and personality-wise.
Shortly after setting off in his Lamborghini Huracan to a track day near the nation’s capital, Ghostrider and his convoy stop at a gas station—a Petro-Canada, of all things—and are confronted by a member of the Ontario Provincial Police. What follows might be the most Canadian police interaction I have ever seen.
After only receiving a friendly warning (reportedly the only type of warning that exists in Canada), Ghostrider asks the officer if he’d like to take his Huracan for a spin around the block—an offer that is accepted heartily.
The crew’s next documented encounter with the OPP, however, was presumably less cordial. Ghostrider and eleven other members of the North Face Rally had their cars impounded for “stunt driving”, an incident we at The Drive reported on a couple of months ago. In the province of Ontario, drivers caught doing 50 km/h over the limit (that’s 31 mph, to you) get their cars impounded and their licenses suspended for a week.
*Note: While The Drive is an American institution, the author of this particular article is proudly Toronto-raised and -based.